Volunteer Stories

Every day, all across New England, Ascentria volunteers give of themselves to make a difference in the lives of the people that we serve. We applaud you, and we appreciate the generosity and the kindness of your hearts!

Recent Volunteer Stories

Chayanna Acevedo landed in the halls of UNH Durham as a nursing major, but observation hours at a local hospital caused her to reconsider. “I wanted to help people for the long term and be more closely involved to address the root issues not just provide the short term fixes,” she contemplated. It was during her time at the hospital that one professional group stuck out-- the social workers. She noticed they were doing exactly what she was after. Read more

What’s the one special day that is unique to you? When it seems the whole world pauses to celebrate you, or at least that’s how it seems when you’re showered with gifts, hugs, extra big smiles, your phone is blowing up with well-wishes, and your Facebook wall is at its fullest capacity- it’s your birthday! But what if you didn’t know when your birthday was and how old you were? For the many Haitian orphans Courtney Perron met during her time in their country, this was the case. Read more

Leslie van Berkum, having paused her teaching career to focus on her business, missed the daily interaction with people who needed her help. She started volunteering to mentor a refugee family through Lutheran Social Services (now Ascentria care Alliance) and ease their transition by providing extra support on a weekly basis. Leslie recalled “I’ve always admired the work of LSS. My kids played sports all throughout high school with refugee kids and they would constantly talk about how LSS helped them to integrate into their community.” Read more

What do you do with a group of cheerful, enthusiastic and energetic employees from Wegmans? Our answer was to hand them all a paintbrush and put them to work!

On January 28 a team of 17 employees from Wegmans in Northborough, Mass. showed their commitment to the community by volunteering at Emanuel Village in Worcester. The task was to paint the entry way, foyer and hallway in the common area. In less than four hours the group transformed the area, taking it from drab to dazzling! Read more

Deanna Goldner, a graduate student at Clark University in Worcester MA was originally drawn to Lutheran Social Services (now Ascentria Care Alliance) because of her family history. Deanna commented “It was a long time ago, but all of my great grandparents came to this country as refugees. They were forced out of Russia in 1904 and came to the U.S. for a chance to start over. Though the refugees served by LSS come from different countries and backgrounds than my family did, it still feels very personal.” Read more

For the past nine years, Good Shepherd Lutheran Church in Westborough, Massachusetts, has taken on the challenge of providing Christmas gifts to people being served by Lutheran Social Services (now Ascentria Care Alliance). This year generous church members provided gifts for over 170 individuals from three Worcester LSS programs! Enthusiastic and appreciative recipients of these gifts were moms and their babies at The Florence House, developmentally disabled residents at The North Ashland Street Residence, and children and teens in the Unaccompanied Refugee Minors program. Read more

Twelve Lutheran churches in Massachusetts shared their Christmas kindnesswith more than 240 people who are served by LSS!

Tasked with filling 50 Christmas stockings with gift cards and personal care items, Brockton's First Evangelical Lutheran Church members got busy, and after just two weeks all of the ornaments with wish lists were taken and gifts were being placed under the tree! Read more

Sally Le is a native of Worcester, Massachusetts and is currently majoring in math at the College of the Holy Cross in her hometown. She also volunteers as a tutor in the LSS (now Ascentria Care Alliance) Services for New Americans program (SNA). As a daughter of immigrants, Sally spent time as a teenager teaching adult family members English in her home. Sally said she was inspired to start tutoring because of her family’s experience. “I knew through my family how difficult it was to be here in America without being able to speak English.” Read more